Nepal Boosts Public Jobs Services to Combat Youth Joblessness

Strengthening Public Employment Services (PES) is essential for Nepal to tackle persistent labour market challenges, including high youth unemployment, informality, underemployment and skills mismatches. Effective PES are critical to connecting jobseekers with decent work, helping employers find the skills they need, and ensuring labour market policies are responsive, inclusive and evidence based.

Against this backdrop, the International Labour Organization (ILO) Country Office for Nepal and ILO Employment, Labour Markets and Youth Branch (EMPLAB), in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (MoLESS) and the International Training Centre of the ILO (ITCILO), launched the first batch of a national capacity-building training titled "Shaping and Managing Effective Public Employment Services in Nepal," held during the second week of February.

Nepal has made important commitments to employment and has invested in the Employment Service Centre network. However, delivering results at scale requires robust institutional capacity, effective coordination across federal, provincial and local levels, and modern tools and data systems.

"This training is not about knowing more. It is about being able to do more and better, and do it together," highlighted Numan Özcan, ILO Country Director for Nepal. "We must leave here with clear decisions on what we will change in the next 90 days and what we will champion at the policy level," he demanded from the participants.

The training brings together senior officials from federal, provincial and local governments, along with representatives of employers' and workers' organizations and labour market institutions. The training agenda reflects the core building blocks of a modern PES.

Dr Dipak Kafle, Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (MoLESS) stated, "ILO supports us in policy advocacy and in promoting good governance. In a context where labour migration, both temporary and permanent, is a growing trend, effective coordination is essential. Many workers migrate leaving their families behind, and addressing these realities is critical. Initiatives like this contribute to sustainable development, particularly in advancing employment goals under SDG 8."

By the end of the course, participants will have deepened their understanding of PES frameworks; improved collaboration; strengthened stakeholder engagement for demand-driven services; and explored opportunities for digital innovation, including the implications of AI for service delivery and access.

Conducted under the ILO's Strengthening of Employment Service Centres in Nepal (SESC) project, the training programme is implemented in two batches in collaboration with ILO Employment, ILO EMPLAB, in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (MoLESS) and the ITC-ILO. The initiative marks an important step towards building a modern, coordinated and people-centred public employment service system that contributes to decent work, stronger labour markets and sustainable development in Nepal.